I had heard about this event but I was away in mid-August which was the week that it occurred. I knew that it was on a lane off McCaul but I couldn’t remember where. McCaul isn’t that long so I started walking north at Queen. At Dundas, this is what I saw:

below: The edge of a mural by Emily May Rose beckons you to come and take a closer look.

I knew that I was in the right place when I saw the word (is it a word?) #womxnpaintto painted on the ground. So I followed the little yellow arrow and walked behind the buildings to a lane running east/west behind Dundas Street.

below: The mural is higher than the fence by quite a bit so as I walked beside the fence I was able to take this picture.

below: Three murals on a double garage. On the right is a woman with blue and orange rays by @dbetty13 (aka Désiré Betty). The other woman, the one with the wild turquoise hair was painted by toest (aka Sarah Gilmore). On the side of the building, partially obscured by the car is a mural painted by @nightarcade (aka Sarah Cannon).

below: An attempt to get a closer look at the side of the garage (with St. Patricks RC church in the background).

below: A fence with some murals – starting at the end with ” What You Do is Magic” by Shelby McLeod. Magic hands perhaps.

Those three words are what you see first as you walk down Lansdowne just north of Queen Street. This striking wall is the beginning of a group of murals and street art paintings that now adorn some of the walls and doors in an alley on the north side of Queen Street West. The paintings were done last weekend by a group of women artists. The walls had been primed previously by four high school students (and organized by the Toronto Police Services).

below: Shapes and colours by controlartdelete (aka Rachel Wilmshurst)

below: Emily May Roses’s women

below: Abstract houses and greenery by Jieun June Kim

below: Two kneeling women and a long necked bird with wings spread by Caitlin Taguibao

below: Monica on the Moon, “Over the mountains under the stars”

below: A colourful mural by _muisca_ (aka Daniela Rocha)

below: Unfortunately, this one has already been defaced, including the signature.

below: On a seriously cracked wall there is now a pink flower inside a green triangle surounded by a circle, by CVBinns (aka Courtney Binns)

below: Long flowing hair and with eyes closed, a mural by carolannapilado

below: A collaborative effort between auralast (aka Monique Aura) and chiefladybird (aka Ogimaa Kwe Bnes) – mother and child with the city beyond.

below: Also in the lane there are two urban ninja squadron paste ups by Tbonez

below: Looking east along the alley. The first road is Macdonell Avenue. Lansdowne is in the distance.

This project was supported by the StreetARToronto program, Toronto Police Services and the Drake Hotel. I talked briefly with a policewoman who was in the alley at the same time that I was – there is hope that the lane to the east of Lansdowne can be painted in the future.

Before then, a second all women street art jam and mural will be happening in Little India (1460 Gerrard Street East) at the end of August. The street art jam will be on the weekend of August 26th and 27th and will showcase the Woman in the Walls mural being painted at that time.